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hoxton hall - observations

jan lee wrote "Hello! Here is a write up of my little adventure back home tonight. If you are tired then just skip the first bit and read the end paragraph (that's the best part). :) looking forward to seeing you guys again. It was very fascinating to have ths evening's discussion and hear your stories and meet you more. Jan x

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I started by walking (I had my bike with me) I noticed people and kept making eye contact with many people I passed, and see how I felt and let my eyes move away or to them naturally. I noticed after a while that it was colourful to meet people's faces and also it was a challenge and quite releasing to notice all the sea of judgements of myself and others goig theough my mind and then just letting them go like an unsual meditation? , and play the game as if I was meeting them and greeting them with my eyes.

Then I got on my bike to cycle. I started noticing people on bikes. I started humming a song.. It made sense , as some kind of soundtrack to the 'film' I was watching - and I saw lots of movement - buses going by the gaps in between buildings, a man closing his umbrella, I caaught the moment of a large woman stretching and in the middle of a yawn. The dark was interesting and the parts of the street that were lighted up by the lampposts were colourful and kind of surreal. I felt that the rain and the lighting of the night made a real difference to my experience.

THen I was cycling behind a woman on her bike. She suddenly ringed her bell in a very long and complex rhythm before a sharp bend in the pavement - something like 'ding di ding de ding ding ding ding! ! ' so I copied it with my bell the same ryth,m while I cycled behind her. Then there was silence, she didnt respond. By now I was right behind her on my bike, and I had a thought that she might get scared as she couldnt see me and then she might not want to look back and just assuming the worst that I'm a big man stalking her wanting to kill her (!). I also thought, well she could be thinking anything, and that I couldn't control that.. But to be sure I rode a bit further away from her and started to go facster to ride in front of her, in her view. I also put my hood off so she could see my face that I wasn't a pyscho.. And just rode as normal until I got in her view - and dinged the same rhythm again . It seemed to make sense. THen it happened that I rode past her,quite near so that moment I thought - yes ! now's the time to make the move! I turned to face her, and said in my most polite manner : 'Good Evening!' and then she turned to me and smiled and said Hello!

I was so happy/ for that little interaction.......i rode away with a smile..."

hannh buckley wrote
"There was so many things that happened i could say many events, but the one thing that made me say 'I'm going to write about that' happened while me, patricia ,julie, kate and jess were walking to old street station. julie and kate were slightly ahead and myself and jess and patricia were walking three across the pavement. we were at quite a narrow piece of pavement and two men were coming towards us. they had to split and go on the outside of our formation. it satisfied me visually because we were squeezed inwards going one way and they were pushed out going the other way. and it effected the pace of everyones walk. one of the men had quite direct, almost aggressive, eye contact. i avoided his eyes."

Phillida Cheetham wrote
"I was cycling down hoxton street, and as I was going I was thinking that it's quite hard to look properly at things when you're cycling, especially in the shiny slippery rain, with light glinting everywhere. As I was cycling I heard loads of raised voices, and I saw a group of men shouting at each other outside a pub. I was a bit intimidated (and also about to turn left) so I quickly looked the other way, and crossing the road on my right was a man who looked like he could have been mates with the men in the pub, and in front of him was his dog. I actually laughed out loud because the dog was carrying the base of a bright orange traffic cone in its mouth! I must have looked really happy because the man grinned at me too, as if he was glad that I'd noticed his silly dog, and his smiling made me smile more. Noticing the dog was made even better by sharing the moment with its owner."